NOAA issues Coast Guard a one-year permit for Sitka cutter dock work

The U.S. Coast Guard has federal clearance for up to one year of pile installation and removal work on its Fast Response Cutter dock in Sitka. The work carries underwater noise into waters used by humpback whales, killer whales and Steller sea lions.

The National Marine Fisheries Service issued a modified incidental harassment authorization to the Coast Guard on Aug. 3 covering construction tied to cutter homeporting in Sitka. The permit runs one year from the date the Coast Guard gives notice and expires no later than one year from issuance, so the effective window could be shorter than a full year. That window applies to the specified in-water activities the permit covers, not to the homeport project as a whole, which is expected to run through 2028. Under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Coast Guard cannot legally drive those piles without the authorization.

NOAA Fisheries did not prohibit the work. The agency found the project would have a negligible impact on affected species and would not adversely affect subsistence uses, a finding conditioned on mitigation, monitoring and reporting measures the Coast Guard must follow during construction. The permit authorizes 59 instances of Level B harassment for the Hawaii stock of humpback whales. The NMFS Alaska Regional Office issued a biological opinion on July 28 finding the project is not likely to jeopardize the Western distinct population segment of Steller sea lion or the Mexico-North Pacific humpback stock.

The modification reflects a design change from 16-inch steel fender piles to 14- to 16-inch plastic piles, which have a sound source level of 162 decibels and cut installation time per pile from 30 minutes to 15. The Marine Mammal Commission, an independent federal oversight body, reviewed the Coast Guard's Alaska authorization requests and noted that the work would involve pile installation and removal at Sitka and other Alaska sites, with standard mitigation, monitoring and reporting measures required.

The commission also noted that the process requires consultation with Native Alaskan communities that may be affected, and that a plan of cooperation may need to be developed and implemented. Construction and pile work at the Sitka moorings can touch nearby uses of Alaska marine waters and community interests tied to marine mammals.

The Coast Guard awarded the Sitka waterfront homeport contract to Whiting-Turner Contracting Company. Construction is expected to begin in 2026 and finish in 2028.